I'M ALL SHOOK UP CHOCOLATE CAKE

I'm All Shook Up Chocolate Cake
270gm  flour
270gm sugar
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 cup canola oil
2 eggs
1 cup Buttermilk
1 cup Hot water
2 teaspoons Soda
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Vanilla

1/  Pre heat over to 180 deg c. Grease an 8 inch baking pan or lined with grease proof paper.
2/  Sieve flour, cocoa powder and bicarbonate soda together.  

3/  Using a  mixer, blend all the ingredients until well mixed. Don’t over blend, a few small lumps are fine.
4/  Pour the cake mixture into the cake pan, tap them lightly on the table top to release any air bubbles.

5/  Bake for 40 minutes or until cook at 180 deg c.
6/  Cool completely, slice the cake into 2, sandwich with the coconut frosting.

7/  Spread the balance frosting on top the cake.
8/  If you want to decorate the cake with fondant, do not frost the cake with coconut frosting.

Coconut Almond Frosting
1 cup evaporated Milk
1 cup sugar
3 egg yolks
1/4 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/4 cups Coconut
1 cup almond powder

1/  Whisk evaporated milk & egg yolks together, making sure that egg yolk is well blended in.
2/   Place the evaporated milk, egg yolk mixture, sugar and butter in a medium size saucepan.

3/  Whisk entire mixture together until very well blended.
4/  Cook, stirring constantly over medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until frosting has thickened.
5/  Add Coconut, vanilla & hazelnuts, and spread over cooled cake.

Enjoy the shook up cake.

KING ARTHUR CHOCOLATE CAKE

Is chocolate cake sinful? Guess most of us loves chocolate, chocolate cakes, chocolate dessert. Chocolate is my all time favorite.
The cake may look untidy but the taste is marvelous.

King Arthur Chocolate Cake  source from K.A 
Ingredients
2 1/4 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 cup castor sugar
1/2 cup butter ( very soft)
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup milk
1/2 cup cappuccino
4 large eggs

1/ Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda into the mixing bowl.
2/ Add the castor sugar and mix well.
3/ Add the soft butter and use mixer to beat for 1 minute.
4/ Add the milk, cappuccino, vanilla extract and oil into the flour mixture and mix till well blend.

5/ Add egg one at a time and beat until well blend at medium speed. Do not over beat the egg.
6/ Grease 2 x 8" cake pan. Divide the mixture into 2 portion.
7/ Bake at pre heat oven for 25 to 30 minutes at 180 deg c.

Filling and frosting for the cake
8 oz good quality cooking chocolate
200 mls whipping cream

1/ Chop the chocolate into small piece.
2/ Double boil the chocolate and whipping cream until chocolate melt.
3/ Remove from heat, add 1 to 2 tbsp Irish cream and stir till well blend.
4/ Keep aside for 30 to 45 minutes until the frosting slightly thicken.
5/ Sandwich the 2 cakes with chocolate filling, refrigerate for 15 minutes.
6/ Remove from fridge, pour the chocolate frosting on top the cake and frost the side of cake. Decorate as desire.

The fudge frosting is a killer. Make sure to use good quality chocolate to get the ultimate taste.

This chocolate cake is tender and moist.

Life is short, eat chocolate.

CHOCOLATE PEPPERMINT CAKE

Chocolate Peppermint Cake
200gm self raising flour
250gm butter
200gm castor sugar
5 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 tbsp van houten cocoa powder
50mls hot milk
1 tsp peppermint essence / Stevia peppermint
Few drops of green colouring

Honey Chocolate Fudge
150gm cooking chocolate- chopped
90gm fresh cream
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp honey
1) Double boil all the ingredients until chocolate melt. Whisk until smooth and glossy.
2) Pour the warm fudge on top the cake, chill in the fridge.

1/  Pre heat over to 180 deg c.
2/  Line an 8 in cake pan with grease proof paper.
3/  Sieve the self raising flour.
4/  Mix the cocoa powder with hot milk until well blend.

5/  Cream butter and flour to a smooth paste.
6/  In a separate bowl, beat sugar and eggs until spongy.
7/  Add the sponge mixture to the butter mixture in batches and cream until smooth.
8/  Divide the batter to 60% & 40%. Mix the cocoa mixture to the 60% cake batter. Add vanilla and mix well.

9/  Add the peppermint essence and green colouring to the 40% cake batter.
10/ Scoop 4 tbsp cocoa batter to the lined cake pan and top with 3 tbsp peppermint cake batter. Alternate 3 tbsp cocoa cake batter with 2 tbsp peppermint cake batter, repeat until cake batter finish. Tap the cake pan in between to remove air bubbles.
11/  Bake for 45 to 50 mins at 180 deg c.

12/  Cool the cake on wire rack. Decorate with sugar paste as desire or top with chocolate fudge.

Texture of the cake is soft and moist. One of the best chocolate peppermint cake I ever tested.

Have a nice week ahead, Cheers!
Amelia

A Wedding Cake Request

Another year of success and happiness has passed. With every new year, comes greater challenges and obstacles in life. I wish all of you courage, hope and faith to overcome all the hurdles you face. May you have a great year and a wonderful time ahead. God bless you.

My first challenge in 2015 was a wedding cake request. It was always my dream to do a wedding cake and finally my friend Jane gave me this opportunity to let me have the chance to test my skill in wedding cake decoration.

A month ago, my friend approach me to do a 5 tier wedding cakes for her eldest son wedding. It sure was a big surprise for me cos I have no experience in wedding cakes.
Me: "Huh, Jane I got no experience in wedding cakes and it's 5 tiers!" You sure or not?
Jane: I know you very well, you sure can do it. Ok, deal!
Me: When?
Jane: 3rd January 2015. 5 tier cakes and my daughter in law favorite colour is green.
Me: Ok then, since you trust my skill. hahaha....
I was so excited and having sleepless night for several nights thinking of the wedding cake decorations.

Presenting my first time constructing a 5 tier wedding cakes.

Fruit cakes 4 pieces to use as the base.

Heart shaped butter cake.

Marble cake.

Total 12 cakes to construct a 5 tier wedding cakes.

I used 7kg of fondant for the entire cakes. To mix the colouring and hand knead until well blend is a tough job.

I wanted to make pink roses for the cake but due to bad weather, the roses didn't turn out to my expectation.

So I changed the design to daisies flowers. Stamped the daisies flowers at least 1 day ahead.

Used the fondant tool to make a depression on the flowers petals for nicer effect.

Roll a small ball of fondant as the disk florets. Just brush with a little water to use as adhesive.

Stacked the 12 cakes together to checked for balancing. OMG......slant to the left.

Trim all the cakes with cake leveler.

Arh.... finally it balance nice and tall. It sure give my SILs and friends heart attack when I posted this picture in FB.

Roll the fondant to 1/8in thick. Dust with sifted icing sugar in between the rolling. It's tough to roll manually till smooth and 1/8 in thickness. Took me several attempt to get it right.

Stacked the 4 fruit cakes together, brushed with diluted apricot jam in between the cakes as adhesive. Then brush the whole cake with apricot jam and leave it for 10 mins before cover with fondant.
* Mix apricot jam with a bit of water and boil until simmering.

Covered the side of the cake board with fondant and stick the little daisies.

 Took me half a day to complete the base and planting those little daisies.

Joined  2 cakes together and sealed with diluted apricot jam then brush the whole cake with diluted apricot jam.

Covered all fondant seams with daisies and leaves.

I dressed up all the 5 cakes in 2 days.

Saturday 3rd, afternoon 1pm getting ready to assemble the cakes at the banquet hall.

The base measured 18 x 12 in and estimate weight 25kg with fondant. My daughter carried  the cake from our second floor apartment to car park. Phweett...cold sweat!! hahaha.....

The Chinese restaurant which it's 15 mins drive from my house.

The banquet hall. The main table at centre is for bride and groom and their immediate family.

Getting ready to construct the wedding cakes.

Put several dowels at the centre of the base before putting the 2nd tier of cake.
On the right is the bride MIL, a very nice and humble lady.

Repairing the fondant.

Covered the baseline with ribbon.

Add several dowels on every tier of the cake for support or else the cakes will collapse.

Constructing the 3rd tier. Exciting but very nervous at the same time.

4th tier...getting more nervous now.

Woowoooo.... the 5th tier.

Measure the long dowel for the entire cakes. That's my son on the left, he is my assistance helping to checked the balancing and defect. Credit goes to my eldest daughter who took all the pictures.

Get set, ready, go.........getting ready to insert the long dowel.

The final tiers, hands must be steady and I can't afford to make any slight mistake. Holding my breath and make sure I don't hiccups or sneeze during this time.

Ta...daa.... it went in smoothly without ruin the entire cake.

Push the long dowel slowly all the way down to the last tier of the cakes.

Insert extra dowels for insurance.

Combination of white and pink little daisies at the side of the cake board.

Use a cookie cutter to cut out a round disk. Glue with diluted apricot jam to the cupcakes.

Stick a little daisy on top the cupcake. I used water as adhesive for the fondant.

Cupcakes for table decoration.

Prepare the cupcakes toppers at least 1 day earlier..

And some candles in between the cupcakes.

Planting more flowers at the 1st tier of the cake.

Doing some touch up job.

My assistance helping me to do the final checking. He gave me more tension than the cake owner cos his QC is 120%, making sure no defect at all. Glad that both my children are very supportive and helpful with my first wedding cake project.

Repairing and patched up the fondant.

And finally.... completed the 5 tier wedding cake without any hiccups. Took me 3 hours to assemble the cakes.

So far this is my biggest and highest challenge. It may not be 100% perfect but the lovely bride and handsome groom and the family members love it very much.

Here's 3 short videos combined together of me constructing the 5th tier and final touch up.




Sharing some pictures taken from the wedding dinner, It's a grand wedding with 1160 invited guests.

I'm seated at table number 64.

Final touch up of the cake, put the cake topper and light up the candles just before the bride and groom arrive.

The cute cake topper made of porcelain, ordered from china.
Congratulation to Adrian and Shadow. Always know deep down that you're each other's best friend!

I've been asked to make another wedding cake end of this year. Guess the next wedding cake, I won't be so nervous anymore. :))

Have a nice week ahead,regards.
Amelia